CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS DATA 1993-2021
Standing and Permanent Committees of the 103rd to 114th Congresses
Codebook created: 7/20/98, Updated: 03/23/21

Prof. Charles Stewart
Jonathan Woon

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FILE DESCRIPTIONS

File name                       Date Updated	   Description
house_members_103-115-2.xls	   08/15/17         House membership data
house_assignments_103-115-1.xls    11/17/17	    House committee assignment data
senators_103-115-1.xls		   08/15/17         Senate membership data
senate_assignments_103-115-1.xls   11/17/17         Senate committee assignment data

Note:  I have now converted all the data files to Excel format.  The file names
should be self-explanatory.  The first line of the data sets should have the date
of the most recent update.  Ignore any information in the codebooks that make 
reference to column locations, since that information is now obsolete.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: 	All fields are aligned left. (Fields start in first column 
of variable, trailed by spaces if necessary.)  Excel files have the variables
in the described order.


FORMAT SUMMARY FOR MEMBER DATA
Variable

Congress
Office
Identification number
Name (Last, First, Middle)
District/class
State	(postal abbr.)
State code (ICPSR)
Party (1 letter abbr.)
Party code
Chamber seniority
Chamber period code
Chamber status code
Notes 


FORMAT SUMMARY FOR ASSIGNMENT DATA

Variable

Congress
Committee code
Identification number
Name (Last, First, Middle)
Party status code
Rank within party status
Date of assignment (mm/dd/yyyy)
Date of termination (mm/dd/yyyy)
Senior party member code
Committee seniority
Committee period of service code
Committee status code (at end of congress)
Committee continuity code (in next congress)
Appointment citation 
Notes 
Committee name 
ICPSR state code (106th Congress onward)
District (106th Congress onward)
Postal state code (106th Congress onward)

------------------------------------------------------------------------
DETAILED CODE DESCRIPTIONS FOR MEMBER DATA

Variable

CONGRESS NUMBER

103	103rd (1993-1995)
104	104th (1995-1997)
105	105th (1997-1999)
106	106th (1999-2001)
107	107th (2001-2003)
108	108th (2003-2005)
109	109th (2005-2007)
110	110th (2007-2009)
111     111th (2009-2011)
112     112th (2011-2013)
113     113th (2013-2015)
114     114th (2015-2017)
115     115th (2017-2019)
116     116th (2019-2021)
117	117th (2021-2023)	

OFFICE 

3 Representative
4 Senate, 1st Class
5 Senate, 2nd Class
6 Senate, 3rd Class
7 Delegate
8 Resident Commissioner

IDENTIFICATION NUMBER 

Typically, this is the member's ICPSR number. In practice, 
however the source for the numbers are Keith Poole's NOMINATE 
data sets.

For members without numbers, the following conventions were 
used:

Delegates/Resident Commissioners -- start with 70X001 
for each congress, where X is the last digit of the 
number of the congress. Members ordered by last name.


NAME 

For the most part, the names are as they appear in the 
Congressional Directory.

DISTRICT/CLASS 

01-59	House Congressional Districts
79		Delegate
80		Resident Commissioner
81		Senate, 1st Class
82		Senate, 2nd Class
83		Senate, 3rd Class
85		House At-large District

STATE

Two letter postal abbreviation.

STATE CODE 

		New England
		01	Connecticut
		02	Maine
		03	Massachusetts
		04	New Hampshire
		05	Rhode Island
		06	Vermont		

		Middle Atlantic
		11 	Delaware
		12 	New Jersey
		13 	New York
		14 	Pennsylvania

		East North Central
		21 	Illinois
		22	Indiana
		23	Michigan
		24 	Ohio
		25	Wisconsin
		
		West North Central
		31 	Iowa
		32	Kansas
		33	Minnesota
		34	Missouri
		35	Nebraska
		36	North Dakota
		37	South Dakota		

		Solid South
		41	Alabama
		42	Arkansas
		43	Florida
		44	Georgia
		45	Louisiana
		46	Mississippi
		47	North Carolina
		48	South Carolina
		49	Texas
		40	Virginia

		Border States
		51	Kentucky
		52	Maryland
		53	Oklahoma
		54	Tennessee
		56	West Virginia
	
		Mountain States
		61	Arizona
		62	Colorado
		63	Idaho
		64	Montana
		65	Nevada
		66	New Mexico
		67	Utah
		68	Wyoming

		Pacific States
		71	California
		72	Oregon
		73	Washington
		81	Alaska
		82	Hawaii
	
		Territories/Districts
		55 	District of Columbia
		91	Guam
		92	Puerto Rico
		93	Virgin Islands
		94	American Samoa

PARTY

One letter abbreviation (Some minor parties violate the one letter limit.)

PARTY CODE 

100 	Democrat
200	Republican
328	Independent
999  Unknown or minor third party

CHAMBER SENIORITY 

The term served in this Congress for Representatives. The 
Year served for Senators. This variable represents total 
(not just continuous) service in the chamber and is 
calculated from the dates/terms of service given in the 
Congressional Directory.

PERIOD OF SERVICE IN CHAMBER 

		1	Only period of House service
		2	1st Period of House service
		3	2nd Period of House service
		4	3rd Period of House service
		5	4th Period of House service

		6	Only period of Senate service
		7	1st period of Senate service
		8	2nd period of Senate Service

STATUS OF MEMBER IN NEXT CONGRESS

		1 	Continued in next congress
		2	Defeated for election to next congress
		3	Defeated for nomination to next congress
		4	Elected to another federal post (Senate, President...)
		5	Elected to a state or local post (governor, mayor...)
		6	Appointed to another federal post (cabinet...)
		7	Appointed to a state or local post
		8	Retired from public life
		9 	Unsuccessful contest for another office
		0	Inapplicable. Member died or left chamber before the 		
		end of this congress.

NB: 0 would be used if a member resigned midterm to accept 
an appointment to another post, such as a cabinet 
position. 


------------------------------------------------------------------------
DETAILED CODE DESCRIPTIONS FOR ASSIGNMENT DATA

Variable

CONGRESS 

Same as member data set.

COMMITTEE CODE 

See list at the end of this document for committee codes. 
The same set of codes was used for all congresses 
under consideration. Even though jurisdictions and names of 
committees changed at the start of the 104th Congress, the 
same committee codes were used. For example, the Armed 
Services committee became the National Security committee, 
but both use the same committee code.

IDENTIFICATION NUMBER

Same as member data set.

NAME 

Same as member data set.

PARTY STATUS CODE 

		Original appointments
		1	Majority
		2	Minority
		3	Other party

		Members added to committees
		4	Majority addition
		5	Minority addition

		Members replacing departed members
		6	Majority replacement
		7 	Minority replacement

		Other
		8	Other party additions or replacements
		0	Inapplicable; no committee assignment

RANK WITHIN PARTY STATUS 

Original rankings come from the Resolution appointed the 
members to committee.

Additions are numbered starting after the original number of 
appointments. For example: a committee has 10 members and 1 
member is added midterm. The additional member would be 
ranked 11, but still categorized as an Addition under Party 
Status.

Additions and replacements are also ranked according to date 
of assignment, then the order which they are listed on the 
resolution.

Sometimes the "Notes" column will record the fact that an 
appointment resolution specified that a newly-appointed member
would rank in the middle of existing members.  The ranking in
this data set does not reflect these special considerations.



DATE OF ASSIGNMENT (VAR 23-25)

The date is the internal Excel representation of the calendar date.  
Exercise caution in using this date in other programs.

DATE OF TERMINATION (VAR26-28)

Same format as Date of Assignment. Dates used 
typically follow the rules set forth in the original 
codebook. The following rules are a combination of the 
codebook and the preface to Garrison Nelson's Committees in 
the U.S. Congress, Volume 1.

For deaths or resignations from the chamber, the date found 
in the front of the Congressional Directory is used. This 
also applies to members that change party affiliations.
For in-session resignations, the date that the resignation 
letter appears in the Congressional Record is used unless 
the letter mentions a specific date. This applies mainly to 
the House.

For House committee assignments that last until the end of 
the congress, the closing date of the congress is used. The 
Twentieth Amendment sets this date as the January 3rd in odd 
numbered years.

The closing date of the term is also used for members in 
either chamber that are not assigned to committee.

In the Senate, the resolutions appointing members to 
committees will often list the whole committee roster. The 
date the resolution appears naming successors to the 
committee is used. 

If a Senate committee assignment lasts until the end of 
congress AND the member continues in the next congress, the 
naming of successors in the next congress is used as the 
termination date. If the senator does not continue in the 
next congress, the January 3rd closing date is used.

The date is the internal Excel representation of the calendar date.  
Exercise caution in using this date in other programs.


SENIOR PARTY MEMBER 

These codes only apply to the particular congress listed for 
that entry. Codes for Speaker, Leaders, or Whips only apply 
to the committee codes 661 (House Leadership) and 662 
(Senate Leadership). Otherwise, the senior party codes only 
apply to that particular committee.

Unless changes are made mid-term, the assignment and 
termination dates are January 3rd of the appropriate odd 
numbered year.

		0	Inapplicable; either no committee assignment or the 
			member did not reach senior party status for that 
			committee or congress.

		Committee Chairmen
		11	Only Chairman
		12	1st Chairman
		13	2nd Chairman
		14	3rd Chairman
		16	Acting Chairman

		Ranking Minority Members
		21	Only ranking minority member
		22	1st ranking minority member
		23	2nd ranking minority member
		24	3rd ranking minority member

		Speakers of the House
		31	Only Speaker
		32	1st Speaker
		33	2nd Speaker

		Majority Leadership
		41	Only Majority Leader
		42	1st Majority Leader
		43	2nd Majority Leader
                44      3rd Majority Leader

		51 	Only Majority Whip
		52	1st Majority Whip
		53	2nd Majority Whip

		Minority Leadership
		61	Only Minority Leader
		62	1st Minority Leader
		63	2nd Minority Leader

		64	Only Minority Whip
		65	1st Minority Whip
		66	2nd Minority Whip

		Non-standing committee senior party status
		81	Only Vice Chairman
		82	1st Vice Chairman
		83	2nd Vice Chairman
		86	Co-chairman

COMMITTEE SENIORITY 

For the House, this is the number of the term presently 
served by the member on the committee. Each time a member 
leaves the committee and returns, the number of terms is 
reset to 1.

For the Senate, the unit of measure is the year. It can best 
be described as the year on the committee as of the 
assignment date for that entry. For example, a freshman 
senator assigned at the beginning of a congress to committee 
would have this variable coded 1. Similarly, a senator 
assigned to a committee in October of the 2nd session would 
have that initial entry coded 1. If he is reappointed to the 
same committee at the start of the next congress, he is 
still coded 1 since he is still serving his first year on 
the committee.

COMMITTEE PERIOD OF SERVICE 

		1	Temporary assignment
		2	Only period of service
		3	First period of service
		4	Second period of service
		5	Third period of service
		0	Inapplicable; no committee assignments

COMMITTEE PERIOD OF SERVICE 

		1	Temporary assignment
		2	Only period of service
		3	First period of service
		4	Second period of service
		5	Third period of service
		0	Inapplicable; no committee assignments

COMMITTEE STATUS AT END OF THIS CONGRESS 

		1	House: Remained on committee until adjournment.
			Senate: Remained on committee until next assignments 
			announced.
		2	Transferred to another committee.
		3	Left committee for no other.
		4	Left committee before departing chamber.
		5	Member died.
		6	Resigned to hold another office.
		7	Resigned to seek another office unsuccessfully.
		8	Resigned, but neither held nor sought another office.
		9	Member lost special election (Senate).
		0	Inapplicable; no committee assignments

COMMITTEE CONTINUITY OF ASSIGNMENT IN NEXT CONGRESS 

		1	Continues on committee (or successor)
		2	Continues in congress, but not committee
		3	Continues in congress, presently unassigned
		4	Committee is eliminated
		0	Inapplicable; member died or does not serve in next 
			congress.

APPOINTMENT CITATION (Beginning with 106th Congress)

The first sources consulted were the Congressional Record and the chamber
Journals.  Other common sources included the Congressional
Directory, committee reports, and Roll Call.  A citation 
of the form "H233" indicates Congressional Record, page
233 of the House section.

NOTES 

Notes about special circumstances surrounding the appointment.
Includes information about reasons for transferring and 
special arrangements made concerning committee seniority.

COMMITTEE NAME 

ICPSR STATE CODE (Beginning with 106th Congress)

See membership dataset codings.

DISTRICT (Beginning with 106th Congress)

See membership dataset codings.

POSTAL STATE CODE (Beginning with 106th Congress)



------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMITTEE CODES

House of Representatives

Code	Committee

102	Agriculture
104	Appropriations
106	Armed Services (103rd, 109-111th)
	National Security (104th - 108th)
113	Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs (103rd)
	Banking and Financial Services (104th - 106th)
	Financial Services (106th - 111th)
115	Budget
120	District of Columbia (103rd)
124	Education and Labor (103rd, 111th)
	Economic and Educational Opportunities (104th)
	Education and the Workplace (105th - 109th)
128	Energy and Commerce (103rd, 107th - 111th)
	Commerce (104th - 106th)
134	Foreign Affairs (103rd, 110th-111th)
	International Relations (104th - 109th)
138	Government Operations (103rd)
	Government Reform and Oversight (104th - 109th)
	Oversight and Government Reform (110th-111th)
142	House Administration (103rd, 109-111th)
	House Oversight (104th - 108th)
156	Judiciary
160	Merchant Marine and Fisheries (103rd)
164	Natural Resources (103rd, 111th)
	Resources (104h - 109th)
168	Post Office and Civil Service (103rd)
173	Public Works and Transportation (103rd)
	Transportation and Infrastructure (104th - 111th)
176	Rules
182	Science, Space, and Technology (103rd)
	Science (104th - 109th)
	Science and Technology (110th-111th)
184	Small Business
186	Standards of Official Conduct
192	Veterans Affairs
196	Ways and Means
242	Intelligence (Select)
251	Homeland Security (Select 107th and 108th; Standing, 109th-111th)
252	Energy Independence and Global Warming (Select, 110th-111th)
253	Investigate the Voting Irregularities of August 2, 2007 (Select, 110th)
254	Events Surrounding the 2012 Terrorist Attack on Benghazi (Select, 113th-114th)
255     Climate Crisis (Select, 116th-)
256     Modernization of Congress (Select, 116th-)


SENATE COMMITTEE CODES

Code	Committee Name					

305	Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry              
306	Appropriations                                    
308	Armed Services                                    
314	Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs               
316	Budget                                            
321	Commerce, Science, and Transportation             
330	Energy and Natural Resources                      
332	Environment and Public Works                      
336	Finance                                           
338	Foreign Relations                                 
344	Governmental Affairs (103rd to 108th)
  	Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (109th-)
358	Judiciary                                         
362	Labor and Human Resources (103rd to 106th)
	Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (107th-)
380	Rules and Administration                          
384	Small Business (103rd to 107th)
	Small Business and Entrepreneurship (108th-)
388	Veterans' Affairs                                  
419	Aging (Special)                                   
432	Intelligence (Select)                             
434	Ethics (Select)                                   
435	Indian Affairs (Select)  


JOINT COMMITTEES

500  Library
501  Printing
503  Taxation
507	Economic
550  Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans (Select) (116th)


Leadership

661	House Party Leadership               
662	Senate Party Leadership


No assignment
                     
770	Elected, not sworn                                
772	Resigned before assignment                        
775	Appointed, not sworn                              
780	Sworn, only select committee                      
790	Elected and sworn, not assigned                   
795	Appointed and sworn, not assigned
